Stay, Now and Then
by GoldenWolf X
Summary: She wonders sometimes, if there would ever be a time in which she would Stay.


I feel like I should have never taken down the previous version of a certain fic I had, honestly.

It's one of my biggest regrets.

Not that anyone will ever remember since it was well over 4-5 years ago.

* * *

 _ **Rated: T**_

 _ **Genre :**_

 _ **Friendship, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, and (Maybe) Tragedy.**_

* * *

 _ **Chapter:**_ _**Awry**_

It's like Gravity.

Coming to this place.

Again and again.

Try as she might, she can't help where and _when_ she goes. She tried many times to stay in place, but she just couldn't, and it truly was bothersome. Everytime she went, it'd be random places in random times, of course, she eventually came to realize something throughout many of her 'trips'.

She'd never travel back any more than 15 years.

And she'd never travel any less than 8 years either.

How she might have realized this, was simple.

While she rarely ever appeared in the same place at the same time twice, there was one place, that she just seemed to be tethered to. A place that she'd visit in her usual dwelling in time, A place her childhood friend spent many of her summers at during her childhood.

* * *

 _Steel Gray eyes look at her curiously, innocence and naivety were the only instinct this child had._

 _That much the piercing amber eyes could see in the small child staring up at her in what must awe. "Hey there.", She spoke first as she kneeled down before the child that discovered her hiding spot._

" _Hi", The small ravenette said in a small voice, her hands grasping the sides of her dress, clearly the child was slightly nervous._

 _The amber eyed teen smiled softly, "Sorry.", the Auburn haired girl couldn't help but apologize, she gestured to the picnic blanket that she had taken from the ravenette when the little girl had wandered off back inside her grandparent's summer home to retrieve the picnic basket filled with snacks. "Sorry for taking the blanket, I don't travel with clothes.", The teen rose a hand from the blanket that she wrapped around herself and brought it to her face to remove her bangs from her face._

 _The little girl nodded sheepishly, "That's okay.", she looked down to her shoes, she fidgeted for a brief moment before speaking again, "Why don't you have clothes?", she questioned innocently as she looked up to meet the older girl's soft gaze._

 _The teen hummed as she looked away for a moment, she sighed softly before looking back to the ravenette's face. "I can't bring my clothes with me.", she simply says with a shrug._

 _The little girl raises her eyebrows, "Why?"_

" _I don't know.", The girl sighs again, "Honestly, I really wonder that."_

" _What if it's cold?", The little girl says with worry building in her tone, her pink lips slowly start to form a frown._

" _Then I just bear with it until I go back."_

" _Back?", The little girl questions._

 _The teen's lips begin to crack into a grin, she feels it, that odd sensation that coursed through her body when she felt like she was leaving. "Uh, It's...complicated, but right now, I'm going back.", she began to stand up._

 _The little girl backed up slightly, silently looking up at the Auburn haired girl clad in the blanket._

 _The Blanket covered teen couldn't help but chuckle, "See you around."_

 _The little girl's lips parted to speak, but just as she almost worded out what she wanted to say, the girl in front of her vanished into the air, the blanket fell into a small pool onto the grass._

 _Steel Gray eyes gazed in pure awe at the blanket before her._

* * *

A gasp filled the bedroom.

Lips part to take a gulp of air.

Amber eyes opened and found the ceiling in her view, she couldn't help but sighed out, relief and disappointment filled her.

"Oh, Mio.", she sat up, her clothes were just scattered about on the floor, she literally left as she was entering her room, and when she did, her clothes had been left behind in a heap. She ran her hand through her hair, her amber eyes eyed the yellow accessory that kept her bangs at bay, on the floor.

She got up from the bed and walked toward her clothes, she grabbed them and began to get dressed.

"Ritsu?"

Amber eyes looked up toward the door as she hurriedly began to slip her shirt on, "Give me a minute, mom.", she said as she grunted and got to the door. She opened it and found her mother worriedly staring at her. "What?", Ritsu said softly.

"You...left?", the woman said somberly. Fear glints in her eyes for just a second.

Ritsu releases a sigh and runs the back of her head, she nods.

The woman sucks in a breath and looks down to Ritsu's feet, she sees dirt, and what seemed to be a little mud covering them. She clicked her tongue and swallowed thickly as she looks away for a moment.

Ritsu knows, she knows her mother's afraid of what she can't help but do, the reason for the fear her mother holds, has yet to be revealed to her. Despite her mother not openly wording it out, she couldn't help but catch that quick look of fear that washed over her mother's face whenever they saw each other after she returned from her short trips away. The way her mother's facial features would darken for that small moment, the way her lips twitched, almost as if she wanted to say something, but stopped herself from doing so.

"Where did you go this time?", The woman asked.

Ritsu looked down for a moment and sighed softly, "To that same place."

"Again?"

Ritsu nodded. "Yeah."

"I see. That's what, four times this month alone?", dark brown eyes gazed curiously at the teen.

Ritsu nodded, "Yeah", she merely answered.

The woman looked away and she began to back away, "Be careful, okay.", the woman spoke weakly as she turned around. "You should shower, Dinner'll be ready in an hour."

The teen began to step back into her room, "Alright.", she sighed and closed her door, she sucked in a breath and turned around, she stepped back into the door, her back sliding down it's surface as she sat on the floor, she leaned her head back enough for her head to also press against the door. She was tired, four times in one month, was definitely different, she usually 'left' once or twice a week, but never to the same places. But now, she was going to 'that' place more and more often. Usually it'd only be once in a while she'd make an appearance at that familiar wooded spot. But clearly that was changing. She usually avoided contact with the ravenette, but this time, she didn't. She wasn't subtle enough, but then again, she did take the girl's picnic blanket in an effort to cover herself up as much as she could.

Ritsu groaned softly, she wondered, if her actions had affected Mio, if Mio would remember anything. Amber eyes closed, and she simply sat in silence for a brief moment, a moment in which she relished her time.

Each and every second.

* * *

I deeply apologize for any typos and errors.


End file.
